Marisa Marino, Stilisti
Call her the Cesar Millan of hair: With her big round brush and expertly wielded blow dryer, Stilisti owner Marisa Marino has no equal in commanding our unruly manes to sit, stay, or roll. The tresses listen respectfully, then fall just where she wants them—and remain looking salon-fabulous for a good 48 hours. 138 Newbury St., Boston, MA 2116, stilistiboston.com.
Sarra
People don't realize how important brows are to the face,' says Lauren Genatossio, brow master at Sarra. So she meticulously tweezes them into well-shaped submission. (She never waxes—plucking is more precise, she says.) Genatossio also offers advice on keeping brows looking their best—in the case of one tester, she even used pencil to show where they could use extra growth. The result is brows that feel naturally beautiful—never too thin or overly arched. 840 Summer St., Boston, MA 2127, .
Bradley & Diegel
How would you like your blowout today: sleek and long or Barbarella-style bouncy? Of all the stylists we visited, this was the only one to ask our preference. But that's not all. The B&D staffers really tease out the pampering experience; never do you feel hurried as the friendly folks shepherd you from shampoo station (where they give some of the finest scalp rubs in town) to massage chair. Best of all, each client leaves with a mane that looks as sexy as a supermodel's for three whole days. 77 Newbury St, Boston, MA 2116, bradleyanddiegel.com.
JJ Gonson, Cuisine en Locale
So you're a little lazy. Or overworked. Or simply a really, really bad cook. No one has to know—not with Gonson around cover your tracks. Armed with fresh ingredients culled from local growers and farmers' markets, the Cambridge-based chef swoops into homes throughout the Hub, leaving a week's worth of healthy meals in her wake. And she's not afraid to share her tricks, offering kitchen and pantry organization and private gourmet-grocery shopping, too.
Beacon True Value Home Center
Squished into a Beacon Hill storefront is this incredible urban resource center. Need to rent a power drill? It's five bucks a day. Run out of paint in the middle of a job? Head right over. Want to plant a window box full of tulips? Seeds of every sort are out front on the sidewalk (in season). Plus, the store sells the entire Leatherman line of cool-dude tools, and the service is terrific; these guys make Bob Villa look like he needs a little renovating. 216 Cambridge Street, Boston, MA .
Akris
Luxurious double-faced cashmere, the basis of an Akris coat, keeps out the cold and looks great in the process. (A novel concept in fashion: practicality.) The coat collection here is all about fabric and tailoring, exquisite wraps for the consumer who lives and buys by the maxim quality, not quantity. As one faithful customer pointed out: "They're forever." Better be, at these prices. 16 Newbury St., Boston, MA .
Perdix
Everything about this tiny store-front boîte makes you wish that you, too, had bought a fixer-upper in Jamaica Plain. Chef Tim Partridge's menu is the kind of food you'd cook at home if only you had more time, with basic but tempting dishes from roasted spring lamb with fingerling potatoes and watercress to simple seared sea scallops. 597 Centre St., Jamaica Plain, MA .
Café Brazil
From the outside, Café Brazil doesn't look like much. But the warm welcome from the straight-from-São Paulo staff matches the spicy, authentic dishes served inside. The fish dishes, in particular, are addictive and flavorful and the Brazilian specialty of feijoada—a pork stew served with beans, collared greens, and orange slices—is almost frighteningly heavy. Wash it down with a beer or the favorite Brazilian tropical fruit soda Guarana while soaking up the live samba music. 421 Cambridge St., Allston, MA .
Blue Ribbon Bar-B-Q
Whether it's North Carolina pulled pork, Kansas City burnt ends, Texas sliced beef brisket, or Memphis dry-rubbed ribs, the key to Blue Ribbon's success is, like all great barbecue, slow cooking at low temperatures, in this case, over oak and hickory hardwood. Whichever style you prefer, it makes for incredibly tender 'cue with just the right smoky flavor. Good prices, great sides, but no real dining room. Sit on a stool by the counter, or take your bounty home. 905 Massachusetts Ave., Arlington, MA .
Salts
Chef Gabriel Bremer's menu is blissfully free of the buzzwords of the moment. That's because he knows what he does, and he does it consistently well. Witness a frothy dollop of foam atop an amuse-bouche of creamy squash soup, or a soft-cooked egg lounging on steel-cut-oat "risotto." And then there's the duck for two—with crispy, lavender-honey-glazed skin and tender meat, it's so exquisitely prepared that you need to order it in advance (and you should). 798 Main St., Cambridge, MA 2139, saltsrestaurant.com.
Woodward at the Ames
When you're looking for someone to pick up what you're puttin' down, try the Ames hotel's saloon, where a glass-topped bar and stainless steel accents lend an upscale gloss to the robust singles scene. If you're not ready to chat up a Financial District suit, head for the dance floor—or plot your next move while nursing a motivationally named cocktail, such as the "Skip and Go Naked." 1 Court St., Boston, MA 2108, ameshotel.com.
Oishii
Sushi restaurants these days often look like futuristic temples, and the newfangled rolls they serve are themselves elaborate works of architecture. So it may seem surprising that a cramped 13-seat spot with nightly hour-long waits continues to inspire such reverence. And then you taste the fish: buttery baby hamachi scattered with slivered jalapeño; a teacup full of creamy Kumamoto oyster sashimi; and, for timid eaters, stellar samples of standard tuna and salmon. 612 Hammond St., Chestnut Hill, MA 2467, oishiiboston.com.
Blue Ribbon Bar-B-Q
The deep, pink ring along the outer rim of a slice of Blue Ribbon brisket proves it's been smoked long and slow, the hallmark of authenticity. No surprise: The counterspace-only joint looks like it was lifted from a dirt road in Texas, right down to the corrugated tin walls plastered with battered license plates. Equally down home are North Carolina pulled pork, beans that smack of earthy molasses and brown sugar, and corn bread that's good enough to bring tears to a southerner's eyes. 908 Massachusetts Ave., Arlington, MA 2476, blueribbonbbq.com.
Jake's Boss BBQ
Slow-smoked, slow-cooked, but served fast, Jake's pork ribs are greasy slabs of heaven. Or they would be, if heaven were built out of meat so tender it melts off the bone in saintly gobbets, doused in a sauce precisely balanced between infernal smoke and angelic sweetness with just the right smack of spices. The devout will also want to pay homage to the beef ribs, the brisket, and the "burnt ends," all of which are equally divine. 3492 Washington St., Jamaica Plain, MA .
Savenor's
The exotics section—black bear, kangaroo, rattlesnak—may score all the novelty points, but it's the top quality of the more-conventional meats at this family-run business that has won the dedication of home cooks and area chefs alike (including Julia Child). The vast majority of the offerings are free of hormones and antibiotics, and they're local, too: Vermont Berkshire pork, Maine-raised sirloin from alfalfa-fed herds. 92 Kirkland St., Cambridge, MA 2138, .